With all the serious racing done and dusted by early
December one would think the festive season would be a time we can let our hair
down a little. Well yes…and no. The powers-that-be have deemed the first two
months of the new year appropriate to hold the most important races on the
domestic calendar – the National MTB and Road Race titles.
This effectively kills any plans of a no-holds-barred
assault on the liquor cabinet and for this I am thankful, eventually. Having had, shall we say, an interesting relationship
with booze in a previous life I’ve been super-sensitive to my drinking habits
and the habits of those surrounding me.
The best on-bike performance of my career was preceded by 3 alcohol-free
months. In retrospect I can’t say if it
was the physical effects of abstaining that improved performance or that I was
obviously highly motivated to take such a vow and this was reflected in my
training. My attitude over the last
couple of years has mellowed and I have adopted the maxim that if there are
more alcohol-free days in my week than days of indulgence, I’m all good. Health guidelines advise that any more than 4
standard drinks is officially a binge and let me tell you that’s not nearly as
much red wine as you would think! A
recent article I read in a reputable newspaper (is there any such thing
any more??) said doctors do not know of a more beneficial medicine than red wine
in terms of antioxidants, but more importantly it is the social act of drinking
with friends that also affords a benefit to a person’s mental health. So don’t drink alone okay? And no, the dog doesn’t count as company.
The upside to doing a bazillion training miles as part of my
‘base building’ phase is the inability to put on weight or to even maintain
what I have. In the last month I’ve
watched the small suggestion of cleavage I had disappear to leave me with the
chest of a 10 year old boy. Nicely
balanced with the fact my ass has gone the other way due to muscles accumulated
from many mountain ascents and I am reminded that I don’t do this sport for the
stunning physique it affords. Suffering
eating-fatigue I was relieved to see a notable absence of bananas, gluten free
bread and spinach at the Christmas spread.
As my ex-husband and his brother are chefs I have never been expected to
hold the festive banquet but am allowed to bring a salad which everyone
pretends to enjoy. This year involved
the consumption of seven different animals: chicken, turkey, duck, beef,
octopus, scallops and prawns. Not bad
for a former vegetarian.
For the first time in many years I gave myself Christmas Day
off training. I hope none of my coaching
clients are reading this after my “it’s just another day” speech! The reason for doing this is for the sake of
my long-suffering family who put up with my fatigue and grumpiness for 364 days
of the year. I just wanted to wake up on
Christmas Day and be able to spend every hour with family and friends and
reflecting on how much they mean to me and how much less my life would be
without them. And I wanted to do this
while NOT wearing lycra. Sponsors are
great and all, but it’s friends and family that really make all my adventures
possible.
After turning it over in my mind I really couldn’t find a
great reason to do Road Nationals in Ballarat so my next big race will be the
Australian MTB Championships in Canberra, late February. I also decided against the ‘new and improved –
mark 2’ MTB National Series for many reasons which I won’t go in to here but if
anyone would like my honest opinion I will certainly give it, as always.
Have a safe and happy New Year!
